Raj Bhavsar has realized his dream of winning an Olympic medal for the US, but the diminutive gymnast has never forgotten his Indian roots and now wants to help vault the country to Commonwealth Games success.
Bhavsar, born in Houston, Texas after his mother and father emigrated from the Indian state of Gujarat, helped the US men’s team claim bronze at the Beijing Olympics last summer when most experts had written them off.
The 29-year-old arrived in India on Monday fresh from winning a silver medal on the parallel bars at a world cup event in Moscow. One of his signature moves is also expected to be given his name by the sport’s world governing body.
“I wanted to pursue the Olympics not only for myself but to be different and set a standard for Indian youth out in the United States,” he said in an interview. “For me, I’m looking to give back.”
Bhavsar plans to meet Indian gymnasts preparing for the Commonwealth Games, which will be staged in New Delhi in October next year.
India are unlikely to harbor any medal hopes in gymnastics but Bhavsar feels he can be a motivating force for the Games. Indian gymnasts had the potential to perform at the very highest level, he said.
“I can maybe help out on a consultant basis where I just come out and help coach the athletes and younger athletes, help them with some higher-level skills and even perform some of them,” he said.
“It is basically to just enjoy the experience with them and share what I’ve learned as an American athlete,” he said.
Bhavsar said he was not thinking about cashing in on his Indian heritage.
“I’m not even looking at any money. I came here as a humanitarian effort,” he said. “If I can just get a smile on one of the kids’ faces when I leave India, one thing I say changes their technique or they get inspired to do something different, then we are winners.”
Bhavsar plans to make flying visits to India and will stop by the national academy in the northern town of Allahabad.
He hopes other successful athletes of Indian descent would follow his lead.
“I’m just hoping my decision kind of sets it up for others to help this country, not just in gymnastics but for other Olympic sports as well,” he said.
India have traditionally struggled in Olympic sports and only recently shook off the tag of “one-medal nation” by winning three in Beijing, including their first individual gold in shooting.
But the Indian federation look to be serious about taking the country’s gymnastics to a new level and have hired Russian-born US coach Vladimir Chertkov to take charge.
The Commonweath Games feature 17 sports and the hosts are under pressure to win medals across several disciplines.
“Our main requirement is experienced coaching ... the equipment is there and the government is getting the latest for training for the Games,” federation secretary Kan Singh Rathore said.
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